Behar & Marquardt Vision Transforms Building

In mid-December 2012, the Greater Des Moines Public Art Foundation was approached about bringing back the artist team of Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt to create an exterior mural along the 6th Avenue Corridor. (In 2012, Behar and Marquardt were finalists on a major public art project in Des Moines, Iowa.)

They collaborate under the name R&R Studios, are known for their large-scale public art installations. They both have degrees in Architecture from the Universidad Nacional de Rosario. They have exhibited their work at the Museum of Contemporary Art in North Miami, the Fondation pour l’Architecture in Brussels and the Museo Nacional d’Arte in La Paz. Their work has been featured in numerous publications including The New York Times, Aula, Art in America, and Metropolis.

Two buildings were identified and both are owned by the Neighborhood Development Corporation (NDC) of Des Moines; eventually the focus became the Wherry Building at College and 6th Avenues.

Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt, who were born in Argentina, are a Miami-based architect/artist team who collaborate to create work that moves between painting, installation, public art, architecture, and urbanism.

A proposed design with rhombus [or diamond] pattern is superimposed over an image of the building. The words “All We Need Is Love” (inspired by the 1967 song “All You Need Is Love” written by John Lennon) is included in the design.Another proposed design reveals a natural pattern of large-scale (rosy-colored) flowers and vines which wrap two sides of the Wherry Building. This building is located at the corner of 6th and College Avenues, north of the downtown core in Des Moines, Iowa.